Śānti Parva, Adhyāya 52 — Bhīṣma’s Humility Before Kṛṣṇa and the Granting of Boons
कि चाहमभिधास्यामि वाक्य ते तव संनिधौ । यदा वाचोगतं सर्व तव वाचि समाहितम्,“भला” मैं आपके समीप क्या कह सकूँगा? जब कि वाणीका सारा विषय आपकी वेदमयी वाणीमें प्रतिष्ठित है
ki cāham abhidhāsyāmi vākyaṁ te tava saṁnidhau | yadā vācogataṁ sarvaṁ tava vāci samāhitam ||
Vaiśampāyana thưa: “Ngay trước mặt Ngài, con còn có thể nói lời gì được nữa? Khi mọi điều có thể diễn đạt bằng lời nói đều đã được quy tụ và an lập trong chính lời phán mang tính Veda của Ngài.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
The verse highlights intellectual and ethical humility: true wisdom is not mere verbosity, and one should recognize when another’s speech already encompasses the full scope of what can be said—especially when it is grounded in Vedic authority and disciplined understanding.
Vaiśampāyana expresses deference to his interlocutor, saying he can hardly add anything in that person’s presence because all expressible knowledge is already contained and well-established in the other’s Veda-like speech.